Family+Structure+and+Gender+Roles

Family Structure, and Kinship

//From Bedouininfo, the free wikispace//

=Bedouin Families= Three-generational families often dwell under the same tent at a single time. Bedouin homes consist of roughly nine to fifteen individuals. In addition to the frequent co-habitation of parents, grandparents, and children, married sons introduce their wives into the home, and any of their future offspring reside there as well. This addition is made possible by the bedouin custom of daughters to leaving their family home once married, and moving into the home of their husbands. Divorces, which occur frequently, also alter the living situation of a Bedouin family. Once divorced, daughters return to the homes of their fathers with their children.  Child rearing practices are a communal effort within a typical Bedouin family. By age six however, children are expected to take up tasks and assist the rest of the family with gender specific chores. For the Bedouin, the concept of adolescence is nonexistent. If members of a family pass away, in accordance with the Quran. the wealth is distributed amongst the remaining children. Sons receive 50% of the inheritance daughters 25%. Other close relatives may also receive a portion based on the circumstances. If women inherit large animals such as camals, they are given instead to the brother under the notion that women will not be able to care for large beasts.

=Bedouin Homes = The Bedouins reside in structures called Beits. These are rectangular spaces canvased with either light cloths in the warmer months to provide for maximum ventilation, or a compact covering of black goat hair in the wintertime. Beits usually contain two parts. One part consists of the women’s quarters; household utensils, bedding, and food supplies are generally stored here. It is also where women make the food and care for the children, often accompanied by other women. The only men that are allowed to enter this part of the home are immediate family members. The second part of the home belongs to the men of the family. Women are allowed to occupy this part of the house but must exit directly if ever a stranger or non-relation comes to call. The main feature of this section is the coffee mangal. The head of the household will spend much of his time warming coffee for visitors here. Guests who stay for dinner are served on aluminum trays. Males will dine in groups of four and eat their fill before giving their spots to the next male who waits to eat. Whatever is left after the men have had their share is then distributed among the women and children in the female part of the house. Often, women that are too old to have children are permitted to eat with the males and their guests in the male section of the home. If Beits have a section, it is usually used by the women as a place to take care of sick animals and small children. During the warmer months poultry is sometimes kept there as well. Beits are usually located within close proximity to others based on marriage or patrilineal kinship ties. In this way Beit becomes a term that not only describes Bedouin homes, but also a kin group sharing living quarters.

Attire

Men don long tradi tional dresses and white or patterned head scarves secured with a braided band. If they travel away from their homes into regions of denser population they will add a western jacket to their ensemble. On the other hand women wear traditional Bedouin dresses alw ys. These dresses are floor length, and come in shades of brown, black, or dark blue. They also wear scarves. Occasionally Bedouin women will migrate to cities or towns and adopt the style of a veil which obscures part of the face. Often veils symbolize a woman of higher status because of its association with urban individuals. Young girls wear brightly colored dresses, and a black scarf to cover their hair and neck. Married women wear two, one a solid black scarf and another decorated scarf holding the first in place over the hair neck and chest. Many women also sport facial tattoos to help identify them as part of a specific tribe.